Side filler



March 2, 1965 R. M. LOOMIS 3,171,364

SIDE FILLER Filed NOV. 18, 1963 4 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Russel/ M. Loom/s BY fia J 4W3 R. M. LOOMIS March 2, 1965 SIDE FILLER 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VENTOR. Russell M Loom/s Filed NOV. 18, 1963 March 1955 R. M. LOOMIS 3,171,364

SIDE FILLER Filed Nov. 18, 1963 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 I Q m a i v G /& |I j n. l lll lll 1 i s/ a} I INVENTOR.

B Russell M. Loom/s R. M. LOOMIS March 2, 1965 SIDE FILLER 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Nov. 18 1963 F 7 INVENTOR.

Russell M Loom/s BY 47%, mw 2M W5 United States Patent 3,171,364 SIDE FILLER Russell M. Loomis, Palos Heights, 111., assignor to UNARCO Industries, Inc, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Filed Nov. 18, 1963, Ser. N 0. 324,330 Claims. (Cl. 105-369) This invention relates to side fillers and more particularly to adjustable side fillers for use in railway cars, trucks, trailers, and the like.

A number of different types of side fillers have heretofore been proposed for use in freight vehicles, such as railway cars, for holding lading and generally lading packaged in packages or cartons relatively closely in the car against lateral movement. Some of such side fillers have only one operating position in addition to a retracted or stored position while others are more elaborate and provide a plurality of different operating positions. The former type are generally adapted to one specific use only while the latter type are costly to manufacture and install and have generally been tedious and time consuming to adjust.

A careful study of the commercial requirements for side fillers indicates that the great majority of the require ments can be satisfied by a side filler adjustable to two different operating positions having a spacing of approximately five inches. It has further been determined that a mounting adjustment of approximately one inch to accommodate cars of different widths as well as to provide varying lading space widths is desirable.

It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a side filler which can easily and quickly be moved from its retracted position to either of two operating op erating positions with a minimum of manipulation and without requiring the use of tools.

Another object is to provide a side filler which can easily be mounted in a car without requiring any modification of the car structure or anything more than the connection of supporting hinges to the car side wall.

According to a feature of the invention, the side filler panel is supported on strips hinged to its back surface and which in turn are hingedly connected to the car side wall through pivoted links swingable to two diilerent positions to provide two adjustable positions of the panel. Preferably the hinges at the car side wall are provided with guide plates engaging the side strips to assist in maintaining the strips in alignment with the hinges.

Another difliculty with conventional side fillers is that they must be placed in the desired adjusted position before the car is loaded and must remain in such adjusted position until car has been unloaded. This adds to the difliculty of maneuvering the lift trucks during loading and unloading and increases the likelihood of damage to the side filler.

It is another feature of the present invention that the side filler can be moved out to its extended position after the la'ding has been placed in the car and can be moved to its retracted position prior to unloading the car. This is because the side filler can be manipulated and latched in extended position entirely from one side thereof.

A further object is to provide a side filler which includes self-contained latching means to hold the supporting strips in either their extended operating position or their folded retracted position without requiring any latching parts on the car itself. I

The above and other features and objects of the invention will be more readily apparent from the following 3,171,364 Patented Mar. 2, 1965 description when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a horizontal sectional view through the side wall of a car showing a side filler embodying the invention in operating position;

H6. 2 is a perspective view looking from the rear of the side filler unit;

FIG. 3 is a partial view similar to FIG. 1 showing the side filler in its retracted or stored position;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are partial elevations looking from the side showing the side filler in two difierent operating positrons;

FIG. 6 is a top plan view showing the supporting strips in their extended latched position and their folded stored position; and

FIG. 7 is a rear elevation of the side filler showing the latch means for holding the supporting strips in their extended and latched positions.

Referring first to FIG. 1, the side filler of the invention is adapted to be installed in a conventional railway car or similar freight vehicle having a floor, a ceiling, and spaced side walls. One of the side walls is indicated genorally at It) as comprising an outer sheath or covering 11 supported by a series of vertically spaced Z-beams 12 and with an inner covering 13 secured over the Z-beams. In the case of a new car to be equipped with the side filler of the invention, the inner covering 13 may be omitted from one of the side walls with the side filler panels serving the purpose of the inner cover.

The side filler itself is supported directly on the inner lining 13 or on strips 14 secured to the side wall of the car either over the inner lining 13 thereon or directly over the Z-bearns 12. In either case, two horizontally extending and vertically spaced strips are provided, as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 2 and which serve as the sole support for the side filler mechanism. The side filler itself comprises a panel 15 which may be of plywood, or other desired type of material. Preferably standard size plywood sheets are employed which are approximately three feet wide by approximately nine feet high. It will be understood that these dimensions can be varied as desired, depending upon the particular installation. The panels 15 are rectangular but are preferably cut out at the bottom, as indicated at 15, to provide toe room. Each panel has connected to its rear surface two vertical supporting strips N which may also be of plywood and which are connected to the panel by means of spaced hinges 1'7, 18 and 1%. The inner edges of the strips, which are adjacent to the panel, are preferably cut out at the hinges, as shown, so that the strips can be swung fiat against the panel in their stored position, as shown in FIG. 3, or can be swung outwardly perpendicular to the panel in their operating position, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The outer edges of the strips 16 are hingedly connected to the supporting strips 14. For this purpose upper and lower hinges are provided for each of the supporting strips 16 connecting them to the supporting bars 14. Since each of the hinges is identical, only one will be described in detail herein.

Each of these hinges comprises a hinge plate 21 which is secured to one of the supporting bars hingedly joined to a second enlarged hinge plate 22 by a removable hinge pin Ztl. The hinge plates 22 are preferably shaped as best seen in FIGS. 4 and 5 to extend over the adjacent edges of the supporting strips 16 and to span cutouts 23 formed in the supporting strips to provide clearance for the hinges. Steel spacer pins 28 of the same thickness as the supporting strips 16 are riveted to the inner face short hinge plates bolted or otherwise secured to the panel.

with relatively long narrow hinge plates overlying one face of the adjacent supporting strip 16 and secured thereto. A stop plate 26, similar in size and shape to hinge plate 25 overlies the opposite face of the supporting strip and both plates extend into the cutout 23 in the,

supporting strip to terminate substantially flush with the outer edge of the supporting strip, as best seen in FIGS. 4 and 5. 7

To connect the supporting strips to the mounting hinges, links 27 are provided pivotally connected at one end, to one of the spacer pins 28, between the hinge plate 22 and the guide plate 24. The other spacer pins 28 are so positioned as to hold the links 27 in an upward and outwardly tilted position, as seen in FIG. 4, or to limit downward swinging of the links when they are in an extended position, as shown in FIG. 5. In this latter position, the spacer pins do not carry any particular weight but serve to limit downward swinging of the links to facilitate attachment thereof to the supporting strips. The links are connected at their other ends to the hinge plates 25 and guide plates 26, as indicated in FIGS. 4 and 5. For this purpose the projecting end portions of the plates between which the ends of the links extend .are formed with spaced sets of openings 29 and 31. Pivot pins 32 may be inserted through either set of openings and through reduced openings in the ends of the links thereby to secure the supporting plates to the hinges in different adjusted positions. Normally, only two sets of pivot openings are required which are spaced approximately one inch apart.

Latch means are provided on the side filler to hold the supporting strips in either their extended or folded retracted positions without requiring any attachments on the side wall of the car. Forthis purpose one of the supporting strips on each panel is provided adjacent its vertical center with a latch element 33 in the form of a strip of metal folded over and bolted or otherwise secured to the edge of' the supporting strip. The loop provided by the strap 33 extends beyond the edge of the supporting strip to form a latching opening, as shown, and in addition the strap is partially cut away at its outer edge to leave a flat latching element 34, as best seen in FIGS. 2, 6 and 7. To hold the supporting strip extended, a'hook member 35 is connected to the panel 15 adjacent to its edge by means of a supporting loop 36. With the supporting strip folded out to its perpendicular position, the end of the hook member can pass through the loop defined by the strap 33 to hold the supporting strip extended.

To hold the supporting strip in its folded retracted position, a conventional spring latch 37 is secured to the back surface of the panel and is provided with a spring pawl 38 which will engage the latch plate 34 when the supporting strip is folded in flat against the back of the panel. The latch may be released by a release button 39 which can be reached through a registering opening in the panel,- as best seen in FIGS. 6 and 7.

In use, the side filler may be folded to a retracted stored position adjacent to the side wall of the car where it will project a minimum distance into the car. To fold it to this position, as shown in FIG. 3, the panel 15 may be grasped at handhole 40 and raised to swing the links 27 As is apparent from FIG. 3, in I 4 adjacent to the car side wall with its outer surface spaced from the car side wall a distance equal to the thicknessof the panel and the plywood supporting strips plus the thickness of the hinge plates 25 and 26. Openings may be provided in the panel to accommodate the hinge pins 32, as shown in FIG. 3, so that a very small space is occupied by the side filler unit. Preferably filler strips 41 are secured to the, edges of the panel to engage the car side will and support the panel edgeswhen it is in its folded stored position. I I

To move the panel to its operating position, the latch 37 is released through the release button39 and the panel is swung out from the side Wall of the car until the supporting strips 16 are perpendicular thereto. As seen in FIG. 1, the guide plate 24 and stop plate 26 in this position will engage the hinge plates secured respectively to the panel and the car side wall to limit further swinging of the supporting strips. The hook 35 may then be en-.

gaged in the loop formed by the strap 33 tohold the supporting strips extended. At this time the links 27 will occupy the position shown in FIG. 4 with the panel spaced a predetermined distance from the car side wall and with the lower edge of the panel supported above the floor of the car. In one desirable design, the outer surface of the panel in this position will be spaced either 8 /8 inches or 9% inches from the'car side wall, depending upon whether the pivot pins 32 are in the openings 29 or 31. For moving the panel to its second adjusted position, the panel is grasped at handhole 40 and pulled forward to swing the links to the position shown in FIG. 5. At this time, the lower edge of the panel Will rest on the car floor through skids 42 so that the weight of the panel is not carried by the links. In this adjusted position the panel will be moved further into the car to narrow the lading space of the car. In one desirable construction, the links are made of a length such that the spacing from the face of the panel to the side wall of the car will be either 13% inches or 14% inches, again depending upon which of the openings 29 or 31 receive the pivot pins 32.

Alternatively, the car may be loaded before the side filler is pulled out to its extended position. With the lading in the car spaced from the side wall the operator can stand at the exposed end of the panel, swing it out from the side wall and engage the hook 35 without being required to move in front of the panel. In this connection, he can easily reach in from the end of the panel to release the latch 37. For maximum side filler spacing the operator can swing the links 27 out to their horizontal positions of FIG. 5 while the panel is still in position close to the car side wall. To extend the panel he can then swing -it out in they same manner described above with the panel sliding over the floor on the skids 42. The panel may also be folded back against the side wall by releasing the hook 35 before the lading is removed.

For assembling the unit in a car, the hinge plates 21 may be secured to the mounting bars 14 or directly to the side lining 13 in the car. The panels are then placed in position with hinge plates 22 registering with the hinge plates 21 and the pins 20 inserted. Alternately the hinge plates 22 and guide plates 24 may be connected to the hinge plates 21 and the panel may be moved into position with the ends of'the links 27 in their extended horizontal position shown in FIG. 5 fitting between the hinge plates 25 and 26. The pins 32 may then be easily inserted in either set of openings, as desired, to complete the mounting. It

will thus be seen that with the construction of the present 1) and described herein, it will be understood that it is illustrative only and not to be taken as a definition of the scope of the invention, references being had for this purpose to the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A side filler for a railway car having spaced side walls, a floor and a roof comprising a vertical panel lying parallel to one of the side walls, a pair or" supporting strips hinged at one edge to the panel on horizontally spaced vertical axes, and hinge members connecting the other edges of the strips to the side wall on horizontally spaced vertical axes, each of the hinge members including a link pivoted at its opposite ends on horizontal axes to the strip and to a hinge secured to the side wall, the link being swingable in a vertical plane to move the panel toward and away from the side wall and the strips being foidable fiat between the panel and side wall for movement of the panel closely adjacent to the side wall.

2. The side filler of claim 1 including a latch carried by the panel and a latch part carried by said other edge of one of the strips to engage the latch when the strips are folded flat between the panel and side wall.

3. The side filler of claim 1 including a latch strip looped over said other edge of one of the strips defining a vertical opening at the edge of the strip, a hook carried by the panel and fitting into said opening when the strips are perpendicular to the panel and side wall to latch them in position, and a latch carried by the panel and engageable with the latch strip when the strips are folded fiat between the panel and side wall.

4. A side filler for a railway car having spaced side walls, a fioor and a roof comprising a vertical panel lying parallel to one of the side walls, a pair of supporting strips hinged at one edge to the panel on horizontally spaced vertical axes, and hinge members connecting the other edges of the strips to the side wall on horizontally spaced vertical axes, each of the hinge members including a hinge having one leaf secured to the side wall and its other leaf being enlarged and slidably overlying one side of the strip, a guide plate secured to said other leaf in spaced relation thereto and slidably overlying the other side of the strip, and a link pivoted at one end to said other leaf on a horizontal axis and at its other end to tl e strip on a horizontal axis.

5. The side filler of claim 4- in which the guide plate engages said one leaf when the strip is perpendicular to the panel and side wall to limit pivoting of the strip in one direction.

6. The side filler of claim 4 including a spacer block between said other leaf and the guide plate engageable with the link to limit pivotal movement thereof.

7. A side filler for a railway car having spaced side walls, a floor and a roof comprising a vertical panel paral lel to one of the side walls, a pair of vertical supporting strips, hinges connecting one edge of each strip to the panel on horizontally spaced vertical axes, each hinge including plates overlying the opposite faces of a strip and extending to the other edge of the strip with the strip being cut away adjacent to its other edge to leave the space between the plates open, second hinges secured to the side wall on horizontally spaced vertical axes, and links pivotally connected on horizontal axes to the second hinges and to the open end portion of the plates, the plates being formed with spaced openings therein for pivotal connection of the links thereto selectively at spaced points.

8. The side filler of claim 7 including a latch carried by the panel and a latch part carried by said other edge of one of the strips to engage the latch when the strips are folded flat against the panel.

9. The side filler of claim 7 including a loop member secured to the other edge of one of the strips, a hook carried by the panel to engage the loop member when the strips are folded out from the panel, and a latch carried by the panel to engage the loop member when the strips are folded flat against the panel.

10. The side filler of claim 7 in which the second hinges include plates slidably overlying said other edge portions of the strips to guide the strips.

References Qited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,963,545 Campbell et al. June 19, 1934 2,819,810 De Witt Jan. 14, 1958 2,885,221 Weeks May 5, 1959 

1. A SIDE FILLER FOR A RAILWAY CAR HAVING SPACED SIDE WALLS, A FLOOR AND A ROOF COMPRISING A VERTICAL PANEL LYING PARALLEL TO ONE OF THE SIDE WALLS, A PAIR OF SUPPORTING STRIPS HINGED AT ONE EDGE TO THE PANEL ON HORIZONTALLY SPACED VERTICAL AXES, AND HINGE MEMBERS CONNECTING THE OTHER EDGES OF THE STRIPS TO THE SIDE WALL ON HORIZONTALLY SPACED VERTICAL AXES, EACH OF THE HINGE MEMBERS INCLUDING A LINK PIVOTED AT ITS OPPOSITE ENDS ON HORIZONTAL AXES TO THE STRIP AND TO A HINGE SECURED TO THE SIDE WALL, THE LINK BEING SWINGABLE IN A VERTICAL PLANE TO MOVE THE PANEL TOWARD 